A Dream is a Wish
by The Gypsy Scribe
Summary: Fred falls into a coma after the Final Battle of Hogwarts, and is trapped in a perpetual dream. Hermione finds herself in this dream world every time she falls asleep. In this dream world, Fred and Hermione become closer than they have ever been. In real life, Hermione tries desperately to wake Fred up, but will he even remember his dreams when he wakes up?
1. Chapter 1

_A/N: This is my very first attempt at a fanfic. Please be nice, but constructive criticism is always welcome. Also, I do not own the rights to anything Harry Potter related, this is just for fun._

"There's a heartbeat. Merlin's beard, there's a heartbeat."

Madame Pomfrey leaned over the red headed man, her eyes wide with shock. She checked his heart for a third time with her stethoscope just to be sure she wasn't imagining things. She wasn't. His heartbeat was very faint, but it was there. Fred Weasley was alive.

It was mere hours after Lord Voldemort had finally reached his demise, Madame Pomfrey and a handful of healers from St. Mungo's were making the official count of the dead and taking the wounded back to St. Mungo's. Madame Pomfrey's heart ached just looking at the list of the people who didn't survive. Lavender Brown, Colin Creevey, they were both still in school. Remus and Nymphadora Lupin and recently had a baby. It wasn't fair that that little boy now had to live without parents because of the Dark Lord.

She looked up at the rest of the Weasley family, huddled together against the stone wall nearest to Fred. Most of them had finally succumbed to sleep, Arthur and Percy sleeping with their backs together, Bill slumped against the wall with Ginny resting against his chest. Charlie had gone to the hospital wing with a healer not long ago to fix a gash in his side. Ron was sleeping with his head on Hermione's lap. Only three people in the huddle were still awake and were all watching Madame Pomfrey intently. Fred's mother Molly, his identical twin George, and Hermione.

Madame Pomfrey made eye contact with Molly and the grief-stricken mother rose to her feet. She made her way to the school nurse and her son, with George following right after her. Out of the corner of her eye, Madame Pomfrey saw Hermione gently place Ron's head on the ground before getting up as well.

"Please come with me." she told the trio when they reached her. They followed her out of the Great Hall and into the mostly abandoned foyer. People were beginning to show up to either take their children home or to make arrangements for those who died. She walked to a secluded corner of the room before turning back on the other three.

"Poppy, please tell me what this is about. Nothing you can say can make this any worse." Mrs. Weasley said. She didn't sound upset anymore, just hollow and defeated. She wanted all of this to be over.

Madame Pomfrey chose her next words carefully, "I don't know everything going on yet, and I don't want to give you too much hope because things are still very much uncertain, but when I was checking Fred, there was a heartbeat. It was very faint, but it was there. He will need to be taken to St. Mungo's for more testing to see if he will be able to be woken up."

Mrs. Weasley let out a loud wail and crumpled to the ground, George kneeling down next to her and holding her in a tight embrace. The two clutched each other, their tears mixing together.

Hermione looked at the school nurse curiously. She didn't want to get too excited about Fred being okay, but she couldn't stop the ray of hope seeping it's way through her.

"What do you mean 'if he can be woken up'?" She asked.

"It seems he has fallen into a coma because of his injuries. How deep the coma is, we won't know until the healers at St. Mungo's examine him. The deeper his coma is, the harder it will be to wake him up, if possible at all. They will have to examine him to see how much brain activity he has, and if he can be woken up, will there be any lasting damage."

Hermione nodded her head then helped Mrs. Weasley to her feet. Molly and George went back to the Great Hall to tell the rest of the family the news and to prepare for Fred to be transported to St. Mungo's. He was too weak for side-along apparition, and floo powder might do more harm than good. Hermione looked at the family of red-heads and smiled before going off to find her best non-red headed friend, Harry.

She finally found him at Hagrid's hut, having a hot cup of tea with the half-giant. They nodded to Hermione when she walked in, and Hagrid poured her a cup as she sat down in between the two of them.

"I jus' can't believe it's all finally over." Hagrid said, taking another swig from his bucket sized cup. "I mean, we all wanted You-Know-Who to be done away with, but now that he 'as, I jus' don't really know what to do with me'self."

"I know what you mean Hagrid." Harry said. "All my life was leading up to this point, and now that it's done I just feel empty. My purpose in life is finished and so many people sacrificed themselves for this cause. I just can't help but feel if I had done things differently so many people would still be alive."

"Harry, you can't think like that!" Hermione exclaimed. "Think of it like this, instead of focusing on how many people have died, think of how many people are alive because of you! You saved hundreds if not thousands of lives last night. Voldemort would have just continued to kill people until Britain became a charred wasteland. Harry, please, I know it's easy to focus on all of the people we lost, but you still have me, and Ron, and Hagrid, and so many more people who love you and owe their lives to you."

Harry smiled slightly into his cup. "Thanks Hermione, I really needed to hear that. I think we all have a long road ahead until this is all truly behind us, but this is certainly a start." He looked up at his friend who had been right by his side for the past seven years. "Say, where is Ron anyway?"

She suddenly remembered everything that Madame Pomfrey had told her and Mrs. Weasley and George. "He's is probably at St. Mungo's with the rest of his family by now." she said.

"St. Mungo's? What for? Is everything okay?" Harry asked, panic starting to rise in his voice.

"No, no, no. Nothing like that! Ron is fine." She said, and she saw Harry's shoulders relax considerably. "It's, well, it's Fred. Madame Pomfrey said she detected a faint heartbeat. She doesn't know if the healers will be able to wake him up, but there is a chance."

"Well tha's fantastic news!" Hagrid said, slamming down his cup, tea sloshing everywhere. "Any chance is better than none at all!"

"We should probably see if we can meet up with them." Harry said and rose from his seat. Hermione followed suit and the pair made their way back to the castle.

They walked through the front doors of Hogwarts, and there were many more people in the foyer than there was just an hour ago. Parents were coming to get their children that had stayed in the castle last night, most of the students had gone home before the actual battle started, but some had stayed. Crying could be heard from the Great Hall where people were coming to get the bodies of their loved ones.

Harry and Hermione poked their heads in the Great Hall to see if the Weasleys had left already. They were nowhere to be found, and were about to go find a fireplace to use to go to St. Mungo's, when Harry caught sight of a tuft of turquoise hair poking out from a bundle of blankets. Tonks's mother and Teddy had arrived and were standing near the bodies of Remus and Tonks.

"Excuse me Hermione, I'll have to catch up with you later." Harry said as he walked towards his godson and his grandmother.

Hermione walked to Professor McGonagall's office. _Old office, _she corrected. McGonagall was Headmistress now. She walked up to the fireplace, which was still smoldering slightly, grabbed a handful of floo powder from the mantle, stepped inside the fireplace and yelled "St. Mungo's!"

She spun into the lobby of the hospital and brushed the soot off her robes. She looked around and the lobby was packed with injured witches and wizards. All of the healers seemed frazzled and tired. She went up to one of them and asked for the room number of Fred Weasley. After maneuvering through the crowd, she went up the staircase and eventually found his room. He was still being examined though so visitors weren't allowed. She found the rest of the Weasleys at the end of the hall in the waiting room. She took a seat next to Ron, leaned her head against his shoulder, and immediately fell asleep.


	2. Chapter 2

_A/N: thanks to everyone who has read and reviewed so far. Hearing good things inspired me to go ahead and write chapter two the same day. I don't know how long I will be able to keep this speed-writing up, but I hope to be able to put out chapters at an acceptable pace. So here's chapter two, hope you enjoy!_

Hermione opened her eyes and the first thing she noticed was that she wasn't at St. Mungo's anymore. Sunlight blinded her vision and she blinked a few times before things began to come into focus. She was back at Hogwarts near the Black Lake, but something didn't seem quite right. The grass beneath her was a little too green, the lake was a little too clear, and everything around her seemed a little too perfect. She looked up at the castle and found it completely intact, no sign that there had been a war there the night before. In fact, there seemed to be no sign of anything. There were no students wandering about at all, the castle seemed totally deserted.

She started walking along the edge of the Black Lake with no destination in mind, she followed wherever her footsteps took her. She was nearing Hagrid's hut when she finally looked up. At first she didn't see anything, but as she looked around, she saw a flash of movement coming from the Forbidden Forest. A few moments later, a tall red-headed person emerged.

"F-Fred?" Hermione said, barely more than a whisper. She couldn't believe it. He was okay.

"Hermione?" she heard him call. She started walking towards him. Tears started to sting her eyes. She started walking faster and before she knew it, she was in Fred's arms, sobbing uncontrollably.

"There, there. It's okay Hermione. Everything's fine." she heard him say as he ran his hand over her hair.

"You-you're okay. We all th-thought you were de-dead." she choked out.

"Hermione, look. Does this look like the face of a dead man to you?" He said, stepping back so she could see his face. Hermione smiled and shook her head no.

"Well then that proves it, doesn't it? Now come on, dry those tears and we will figure out where we are." he said.

Hermione wiped her eyes and nose on her sleeve. "I thought this was Hogwarts?" she stated, slightly confused.

"It sure looks like Hogwarts, yes, but something seems, off about it, you know? Everything here just seems kind of surreal. I have walked all through the castle, and you know what I found? Nothing and no one. The place is empty. It's creepy." he said, shuddering slightly.

Hermione thought for a moment. "Maybe this is all just a dream? I mean, the last thing I remember was going to St. Mungo's, sitting down in a chair and closing my eyes. This could all be imaginary."

"And the last thing I remember was fighting off Death Eaters with George and Percy. If this is a dream, is it yours or mine? Wait, why were you at St. Mungo's? Is everyone okay?" he asked, suddenly sounding nervous.

Hermione was silent, unsure on whether she should tell Fred he was really in a coma. But then again, this wasn't _really _Fred. Or was it? Could this really his dream instead of hers? Fred stared at her while she mulled things over, then suddenly she jerked her head up, having an epiphany.

"Fred, you're in a coma." she said. "You are who we are visiting in St. Mungo's. A curse hit you during the battle and we thought you were dead. Madame Pomfrey found a slight heartbeat and you were rushed to St. Mungo's. We were waiting to hear if you could be woken up when I fell asleep. Now if this was your dream, how could I know that?"

Fred stared at her. _He was in a coma?_ He thought. _They weren't sure if he was ever going to wake up? _He slumped down and sat on a nearby tree stump. He held his face in his hands, trying to absorb what Hermione just told him. He had been hit with a curse during the war, but instead of dying, he ended up here. He focused on the last thing Hermione had said. There was no way he could have known that his body was currently in St. Mungo's, but he still had all of his memories as well.

"Hermione, could it be that we are both dreaming of this same place at the same time?" He asked, rising to his feet again. "I mean, like you said, how could I know that I was in a coma and in the hospital? I can't know that. But what if I tell you something that you have no way of knowing to prove this is my dream as well? That I am really here and not just a figment of your imagination."

"I guess it's possible, I mean stranger things have happened in the wizarding world." She said slowly. "But how will I know what you're telling me is true and not something I made up?"

"That's easy." He said, smiling at his own brilliance. "Just ask George when you wake up."

"Alright then, what is something about you that I couldn't possibly know?"

Fred thought for a moment. He knew what he _wanted _to tell her, but he didn't want to freak her out and keep her from coming back. Then again, if she had come here when she fell asleep, she may not have control on whether she stays away or not. And Hogwarts was a big place, dream or not, and they could easily avoid each other if things got awkward.

He took a deep breath and decided to go for it. "Back when we were both at Hogwarts, during the Triwizard Tournament, I was planning on asking you to the Yule Ball. I kept chickening out though, and by the time I had finally plucked up the courage, Krum asked you and I was too late. Then when the ball ended and I saw you crying because of my git brother, I wanted to run up an comfort you, but I didn't want to make things worse. Sometimes I like to think about what would have happened if I had been the one to ask you to the ball, but I guess we'll never know. So how's that Granger? Did you know that about me? Have I convinced you this isn't all in your head?"

Now it was Hermione's turn to be stunned. "Oh." was all she could say. She stared at Fred for a few more seconds before giving him a small smile. "That certainly wasn't what I was expecting. I-I will have to ask George when I wake up to see if this really happened."

Fred looked down at his feet. _Well, she didn't laugh in your face. _He thought. _That ought to account for something._

"Hey now, don't look so dejected." he heard her say, "I'm glad that you told me. And to be honest, there were a couple of times in school I had a bit of a crush on you as well."

Fred looked at her, a wide smile appearing on his face. "Well now I _know _this is a dream." he laughed. "And are you sure it was me you had a little crush on? Are you sure it wasn't my dashing brother George?" he said, and waggled his eyebrows at her.

"No, I'm sure that it was you." she said, "For one thing, George is just a hair taller than you, and then there's the fact that his hair curls around the ears just a little bit more than yours does, you have just a few more freckles on your face, and then there's the dead giveaway: unlike George, you have a permanent half-smirk on your face."

Fred was impressed. His own mother couldn't tell them apart half the time, and then here is this girl, one he had a crush on but had barely spoken to for the past four years, telling him not just one, but four differences between him and his supposedly completely identical twin brother. _This girl is amazing._

"Well my dear, now that we've gotten that squared away, what should we do until you wake up? Explore the empty castle, walk around the grounds, go skinny dipping- OW!" he yelled when she punched him in the arm. "Sorry, sorry, it was only a joke. Course I'm pretty sure I know where you want to go anyway. The library?"

"The library." she confirmed.

The two walked through the halls of the castle, their footsteps echoing against the walls. When they reached the library, Hermione darted off and started grabbing seemingly random books off the shelves. Fred smiled and and shook his head slightly. He always thought she was adorable when she was enthusiastic about something. He turned his head and went to find them a comfortable seat.

Hermione found him ten minutes later with a stack of books that almost reached up to her eyes. Fred looked at the stack of books and started reading the titles. _"Dreams: Hallucinations or Signs From the Future?", "The Magical Properties of the Subconscious Mind", "The True Purpose of Dreams" _He scanned the rest of the titles, realizing what Hermione was wanting to find out. Why were they both dreaming of the same thing and what did that mean?

He watched her delve into the first book and watched her read with a bemused expression. It was a rather small book, so she was holding it with one hand while her other rested on the table, just a few inches from his own. Swallowing slightly, he slowly reached his hand out and placed it on hers. She jerked a little, but did not pull away. He looked up at her and she was still focused on her book, though she had a smile on her face.

They stayed like that for a long time, her reading and him watching her read. Neither of them spoke. Fred wasn't sure how long had passed, but eventually Hermione's eyes began to droop. She laid her head on the table and fell asleep. Fred stood up and gently picked her up. He carried her through the library in search of a more comfortable place for her to sleep.


	3. Chapter 3

_A/N: here's chapter three! I hope you like it! Remember to review with helpful tips, suggestions, what you would like to see happen, etc. You know, just whatever strikes your fancy. Enjoy!_

"Hermione. Hermione wake up!"

Hermione jerked into consciousness to someone shaking her awake. She opened her eyes and saw a familiar pair of green eyes staring back at her.

"Harry! When did you get here? I must have fallen asleep. Where is everyone?" She asked, looking around. The waiting room was completely empty.

"They're in Fred's room. I haven't been in to see them yet so I don't know what the diagnosis is."

Hermione stood up and tried in vain to smooth her hair down. She straightened her clothes and turned toward Harry. She didn't know what she was expecting to see when she looked at him, but her best friend just looked lost, like he didn't know what to do with himself.

"Harry? Are you okay?" She asked.

"Uh, yeah, I'm fine, as okay as you would expect I guess. I managed to slip away before any reporters showed up. I don't think I can handle being interrogated right now."

"What were you up to after I left? Too much time couldn't have passed between when I left and when you did."

"It's been a couple hours Hermione. And I was talking with Andromeda about Teddy. Lupin had asked me to be his godfather, remember? And now that they are both gone, I wanted to talk with her about what would happen next. She seems to really want to raise him, I think because she's lost everyone around her in just a short time, and Teddy is really the only family she has left, so I can't really blame her. She said I could come visit him anytime. She let me hold him too. He is so tiny Hermione. I wasn't even that little when my parents died, and he's lost both of his as well. It's just not fair. He will never know how amazing his parents were. How kind, how smart, how-" Harry couldn't go on. Hermione opened her arms out and Harry fell into them, shaking with emotion. He buried his head in her shoulder and started sobbing.

Hermione rubbed his back in slow circles and didn't say anything. When Harry's breathing started to return to normal, he looked up at her.

"Harry, you're exhausted. These past twenty-four hours have been emotionally and physically draining on everyone, especially you. Come on, let's go find somewhere for you to sleep." Hermione said in her calmest voice.

"What about the Weasleys though? Should we go see if they are okay?" Harry replied, wiping his nose on his sleeve.

Hermione had almost forgotten about them in her efforts to make Harry feel better. Arm in arm, the two of them walked down the corridor to Fred's room. They heard voices talking before they opened the door but couldn't make out what they were saying. The door was slightly ajar and Harry pushed it open and the pair stepped inside. At once the voices stopped and all but two people in the room looked their way. One was George, who was staring too intently at his twin to notice their entrance.

Much to Hermione's surprise, the other person who didn't look their way was Ron. They hadn't really spoken since their kiss, and his current behavior was extremely puzzling. Only when Harry and Hermione went to stand by him did he even glance her way.

"Hey." Ron said to her.

"Hey." She replied. _What is up with him? _Hermione thought. She placed her hand into his. He didn't let go, but she could feel him stiffen slightly. They stood there awkwardly and looked at Fred lying in the bed. Suddenly all of the memories from Hermione's dream came rushing back to her. Hogwarts, Fred, them walking along the grounds, through the castle and into the library, her reading a book while holding his hand. It all seemed so real to her, more than just a dream. She looked at his face, relaxed and it looked like he was only sleeping and would wake up any minute. She knew that wasn't true though.

She heard Harry ask Mr. Weasley what the healers had told them before he and Hermione had arrived. "He's in a fairly deep coma, but the healers are hopeful he will be able to wake up, it just might take a while. We don't know how long that means exactly, it could be days or even weeks. All we have to do is wait. Healer Cornwall said there was a lot of brain activity, which is a good sign, although he did say it might make it more difficult to wake him up. I can't remember how he put it exactly, but basically he is in a constant dream state, and depending on what he is dreaming of, he might not even want to wake up. And even if he does wake up, we have no way of telling if there will be any lasting damage from the curse until he is actually awake."

Hermione felt her heart sink. _He might not even want to wake up. _Those words rang in her ears. Her limbs suddenly felt heavy and she felt herself sway slightly. Ron's hand tightened against hers briefly before releasing. The room was quite for what seemed a long time, all eyes were on Fred. Molly was on one side of the bed holding his hand, and George was on the other side holding his other hand. It wasn't until Bill started snoring standing up that Mr. Weasley announced it was time for all of them to get some much needed rest.

"I'm staying here." George said instantly, his eyes still not moving from his twin's face. They all knew it would be pointless to argue with him, so after giving Fred a goodbye pat on the knee or kiss on the forehead, they all filed out of the room.

Just after the door clicked shut behind them, Hermione remembered a part of her dream. She needed to ask Fred something. After asking Ron and Harry to wait just a moment, she ducked back inside the room. She walked up to where George was sitting and knelt beside him. "George, I need to ask you something." she said quietly.

"Now's not the time Hermione." he said, almost angrily.

"Please, it's important. It's about Fred."

"I said not now!" he half shouted, turning to glare at her. Hermione couldn't remember ever seeing one of the twins angry, but now that she had, she didn't want to see it again. It was almost scary the way he looked at her, of course if she had had the same emotional upheaval he had the past few hours, there was no telling how she would feel.

Hermione's face must have given her thoughts away, because George's features relaxed and settled back to normal. "Fine, what do you want to know?"

Hermione took a deep breath, knowing how silly her question might seem. "Back when we were in school, during the Triwizard Tournament, was Fred planning on asking me to the Yule Ball?"

That certainly wasn't what George was expecting to hear. "How did you know that?" he asked her.

_So it was true! _Hermione couldn't contain her sudden happiness. Fred was alive, and was talking to her in her dreams. "George, I know this is going to sound crazy, but-" and she proceeded to tell him everything that she had dreamed. His features went from disbelief, to shocked, then finally to happy acceptance. He was on the verge of tears again when Ron poked his head in the door.

"Hermione, come on, everyone's waiting for you." he said, and she hopped up, stretching her legs a bit before heading towards the door.

"Hermione, wait." she heard George say. She turned back to him just as Ron left the room. "Please, if, if you see him again, will you let him know I love him?" She thought her heart would break at the sound of his voice, he sounded so vulnerable. She told him that of course she would, and turned to follow Ron down the hall.

They flooed to the Burrow, where Mrs. Weasley was already cooking something up for them to eat. It was simple potato soup, but true to form, it was absolutely delicious. Their meal was subdued, no one talking, but occasionally they would flick their eyes to the two empty chairs normally occupied by the twins.

After eating, Mrs. Weasley immediately collected all of the dishes and started washing them by hand instead of using magic. Hermione suspected this was to keep her hands and her mind busy so she wouldn't dwell on everything that had happened.

She followed Ginny up to her bedroom, grabbing a blanket from the closet on the way. She realized it had been months since she had stepped foot in this house, yet she still remembered where everything was. Ginny helped her set up the cot in her room, and the two girls were asleep within seconds.


	4. Chapter 4

_A/N: sorry it took a while longer to put this chapter up. I work weekends so that's always a busy couple of days. Thank you everyone who reviewed! I have finally decided how I'm going to end this story and I hope you like it! (there is still quite a way to go until the end though, don't worry!)_

Hermione opened her eyes and immediately felt as though she had been thrown back in time. She was laying on a four poster bed with a crimson and gold blanket lying on top of her. Light was streaming in through the window and she sat up to look out. The view was slightly different than the one she was used to seeing during her six years of schooling. Instead of seeing the Black Lake glistening in the morning light, she saw Hagrid's hut, it still looked exactly the same, but there was no smoke coming up from the small chimney.

"Good morning love. Sleep well?" Hermione looked over to see Fred entering the room with a large tray in his hands. "There were no house elves in the kitchens, as I suspected, but I was able to conjure up some breakfast. I wasn't sure what your favorites were, so I brought a little bit of everything."

Hermione was about to scold him for wanting to make house elves make breakfast for the two of them, but stopped when he set the tray down across her lap. There was a sampling of almost everything imaginable for a breakfast. There were a couple pancakes, heaps of bacon, a plate of toast, eggs, both scrambled and sunny side up, ham, waffles, oatmeal, biscuits with butter. Her mouth watered just looking at it all. "Oh Fred." she breathed, "This is amazing. Thank you. There's no way I'll be able to eat all of this."

He chuckled. "Who said this was all for you?" he said as he swiped up a piece of bacon and began chewing on it. Hermione poured herself a glass of orange juice from the pitcher he had also brought, and began helping herself.

After eating in silence for several minutes, she remembered the conversation she had had with George before she fell asleep. "I talked to your brother about you wanting to ask me to the Yule Ball. He confirmed that is was true."

Fred set his piece of toast down. "So are you convinced that this isn't all in your head now?"

"Yes, I am." she said, smiling. "I don't know how or why yet, but it seems like we are connected somehow. Whenever I go to sleep, I come here. And since in the waking world, you are in a coma, so you are always here, is that right?" Fred nodded and she continued, "I talked to your dad before I came here, he said the healer told him that they are hopeful that you will wake up, it will just take time. They said you are in a perpetual state of dreaming, which I guess explains this place. It doesn't explain why I am here though."

Fred picked up his toast again and began nibbling on it absently. It was hard to tell what he was thinking, after a minute though he spoke. "I'm glad they all think I will wake up. I really am. However, for now, I think I am okay staying here. I know it's gotta be hard on everyone, especially George, but, for the moment, I have everything I could ever want. An empty school where I can do and go wherever I want, a beautiful woman in my bed, what more could a guy want?" he waggled his eyebrows at her.

Hermione felt her cheeks redden a little. _So I'm in Fred's dorm. _She thought. _That's why the view is different. _She then thought about the rest of what he had said. _He doesn't want to wake up. _Mr. Weasley said that could be a problem, he most likely wouldn't wake up if he didn't want to.

Fred looked at her frowning slightly. He had no idea what she was thinking, and he wasn't exactly sure he wanted to know. In an attempt to lighten the mood, he suggested going for a walk and explore the herbology greenhouses. "Oh that sounds lovely!" Hermione exclaimed. "But first, I need to excuse myself to get clean."

After she was feeling fresh and dirt-free, Hermione and Fred made their way down the stairs into the common room. It felt strange to her to be entering the room from the opposite side. Once they stepped through the portrait hole, Fred challenged her to a race to the front doors. His legs were much longer than hers, so he took the lead quickly, but he was having so much fun he forgot to jump one of the trick steps. His foot sunk into the step up to his ankle, and Hermione gracefully hopped over the step before running the rest of the way down the stairs, leaving Fred alone to free himself.

He reached the front doors to see Hermione leaning against the wall, hands on her knees, obviously winded. She looked up when he approached and he saw a sheen of sweat on her forehead. "About time...slow poke." she said between breaths, "I thought...you were never...going to get here."

"Yeah, well there's no honor in beating a girl, so I thought I would let you have this one." He smirked. "So, shall we?" he said, holding out his elbow. Hermione stood up and encircled her arm with his, and they made their way down to the gardens like that.

They peered into the greenhouses. Small mandrakes and the tentacula were snoozing in one green house, strange looking magical plants resided in another. They made their way to the last greenhouse and looked inside. There were brightly colored flowers and trees. Fred tried the door and it opened. The two walked inside and a wave of flowery smells overpowered them. They wandered down the rows of flowers occasionally stopping to touch one.

It was hot in the greenhouse, and after only a few minutes, Hermione could feel beads of sweat forming at the back of her neck. As pretty as it was, she was ready to go back to somewhere cooler. She looked up at Fred and he seemed to be thinking the same thing. Without speaking, they made their way back out of the building and Fred closed it shut behind them.

"So what do you think love? A dip in the Black Lake should cool us off."

"That sounds wonderful, but I don't have a suit, or anything to change into." she said.

"Well we'll just have to think of something then." he said and put his finger to his chin. "Oh, I know. Since you don't have anything to swim in, and I don't have anything to swim in, the only logical solution would be for us to leave our clothes on the grass, go swimming, then put our clothes back on when we're finished. Viola! Problem solved!"

"Fred Weasley!" she yelled, slapping him playfully on the arm. "Not even in your dreams! Besides, I'm kind of seeing Ron now, I think."

"You think? I may not be a love expert, but I'm pretty sure you would know if you were dating someone."

Hermione sighed. "It's kind of a long story."

"I've got all the time in the world, love."

The two walked to the Black Lake, and eventually Fred convinced her to take her shoes off and sit with just their feet in the water. "Now then, what is this about you possibly dating my baby brother?" he asked.

"Well, I don't really know. I mean, I've liked him off and on for a few years now. I just felt like we were supposed to be together, everyone else seemed to think so too. And while we were hunting horcruxes, when Ron left I was devastated. I would have never gotten through it if it wasn't for Harry. I really felt like I loved Ron then. Yet when he came back, I had never wanted to hurt him more in my life. He just seems to bring out the best and the worst in me. I thought that was normal, and more than once Harry joked about us bickering like an old married couple. I really felt like I was supposed to end up with him, then when we were in Hogwarts during the final bottle, I kissed him. I had been wanting to do it for such a long time, but when it finally happened, there was nothing. It was nice and all, but there was no...spark I guess. And now Ron is acting all weird around me and I just don't know what to think."

She leaned her head against Fred's shoulder and he wrapped his arm around her. "Is that all?" he asked.

Hermione took a deep breath. "Mostly." she said. "And now I'm starting to feel things for you too and my brain is just all confused and I don't know what to do."

Fred smiled. He couldn't believe she said she was starting to have feeling for him. His heart was doing somersaults. "Well first, I think you need to figure out why Ron is acting like a prat, then we can go from there. It's possible that he didn't feel that spark either." he heard Hermione yawn beside him. "Oh, you can't be getting tired already love! You just got here!"

"I'm sorry Fred, I'm just so exhausted all of a sudden. I will see what Ron's problem is. And before I forget, George wants me to tell you he loves you."

He held her a little closer as she started to drift off. "I love him too." he said as she closed her eyes. "And I love you Hermione." he whispered. She gave a light snore in reply and he knew she hadn't heard him.


	5. Chapter 5

_A/N:hope everyone is enjoying it so far. I love reading all of the reviews you guys leave. It really motivates me and keeps me from slacking off! Here's the next chapter in which everything is cleared up with Ron and Hermione. Hope I did the characters justice, let me know what you think!_

Hermione awoke and look around her. Everything was dark, the moon was high in the sky. She was still exhausted, not sure what had woken her up. She was having such a nice time with Fred, and she was about to go back to sleep to see him when she heard a loud thump. Someone was stumbling down the stairs, that must have been what had woken her up.

Hermione picked up her wand and crept out of Ginny's bedroom onto the landing. "Lumos." she whispered and lifted her wand into the air. She started making her way down the stairs, stepping lightly and mostly silently, the only sound was the occasional stair creaking. She reached the living room and looked around, there was a light coming from the kitchen. She stepped through the doorway and saw Harry sitting at the table, and Ron poking around in the fridge.

"You guys okay?" she whispered, causing Ron to jump and hit his head on the fridge. Hermione laughed slightly and sat down at the table across from Harry. She put her wand away as Ron sat down with a chicken leg in his mouth.

"We're okay I guess." Harry shrugged, "Just can't sleep. Every time I close my eyes, I'm back at Hogwarts in the middle of it all again." Hermione could sympathize. When she wasn't dreaming of Fred, she would get flashes of the battle, curses flying everywhere, bodies lying unmoving on the ground, blood making the staircases slippery. _Had this all really happened just twenty four hours ago? _It seemed like it had been much longer.

The trio sat in silence for a few minutes, the only sound being Ron chewing. He quickly finished eating, and they all just stared at each other, not knowing what to say. Hermione was worried about Harry, everyone had been through a lot during the battle, but none as much as him. He was with Professor Snape when he died, gone into the Forbidden Forest alone, and was essentially killed then brought back somehow, she still needed to ask him about that. He had lost the last connection he really had to his parents, and although he was surrounded by people who loved him, Hermione was sure he must feel very alone right now.

The sun was beginning to peek over the horizon and none of them had made an attempt to move or speak in hours, each other's company seemed to be just enough. Hermione was startled when Harry's head fell on the table with a loud thud. Worry started to seep in until she heard a soft snore coming from her best friend.

"Poor guy has been up for almost two solid days." Ron said and looked at Hermione. She smiled at him, still noting the bit of awkwardness between the two of them. Ron stood up and moved closer to Harry. "I'm going to put him to bed." he stated.

"Ron, don't." Hermione said, placing her hand on his arm to stop him. "He finally fell asleep, let's let him stay here for a bit before trying to move him. Because I'm not sure he would find being dropped down the stairs to be too relaxing." she laughed.

"Okay, so what do you want to do now?" Ron asked.

Hermione looked out the window. Everything was beginning to lighten, the sky was streaked with pinks and oranges as the sun rose. "Let's go for a walk Ron."

The two of them walked across the yard near where Mrs. Weasley kept her small garden. It was too early for the gnomes to be awake, but Hermione knew it wouldn't be too long before they were up and causing a rukus. When they neared the open field where they would play Quidditch during the summer, Hermione stopped and turned to Ron. "I think we need to talk." she said quietly.

"I think we do too." he said, looking down at his feet.

"Why have you been acting so weird around me Ron? Did I do something wrong?"

Ron jerked his head up. "No, no, Hermione! You didn't do anything wrong at all, I promise. I don't, it's just-" he trailed off, trying to find the right words. "I just don't want to hurt you." he finished flatly.

Hermione was confused. _He doesn't want to hurt me so his solution is to avoid me? How much sense does that make? _"I don't understand, what could you do to hurt me?"

Ron fidgeted with the hem of his t-shirt. "I don't want to talk about it Hermione. Really, it would just make you upset."

"Well too bad Ronald. You've been acting weird around me ever since the battle and I demand to know why!" she said sternly, her voice rising louder.

"If you say so Hermione. But please, let me finish and don't be too mad at me okay?" he asked, then looked up to see her nod her head in agreement. He took a deep breath before starting again. "Do you know how long I've wanted to kiss you Hermione? _Years. _Ever since we were like thirteen and you were just starting to, er, develop. That's when I realized you were more than bushy hair and books. You were kind and funny and sweet and you were becoming absolutely beautiful right before my eyes. But I was too nervous and awkward to do anything about it. Then you started dating Krum and I was irrationally jealous. Then I started dating Lavender, which was fine at first, but she got annoying really quick, and I couldn't help but think about you in her place instead. Then when we were hunting Horcruxes, after I left, all I did was think about you. How when I finally got up the guts to come back to you and Harry, I was also going to get up the guts to make my move on you too. I was going to come back, take you in my arms and never let you go again. I was going to kiss you and tell you I loved you and as you know, that didn't really work out."

Hermione could feel her eyes start to tear up. She had never heard him say any of these things out loud, and she was speechless. Before she could even attempt a reply, Ron cut her off and continued, "Then when we were at Hogwarts, and you had destroyed the cup, it finally happened. The very thing I had been dreaming of and building up in my mind for years, finally happened. And it felt, wrong. Like kissing my sister. No, I take that back! It wasn't like kissing Ginny at all, I don't know why I said that, gross. But it didn't feel right. I don't know how to explain it, there was just no, no..." he snapped his fingers, trying to think of the word.

"Spark?" Hermione suggested.

"Yes, exactly. There was no spark to the kiss, no chemistry. I wanted there to be, believe me, I did, but I could make it happen. I'm so sorry Hermione, please don't hate me."

"Oh Ronald!" Hermione threw her arms around him and she felt a couple tears fall from her eyes she was so relieved. It felt like a huge weight had been lifted off her shoulders. She felt Ron's arms slowly encircle her and he patted her back lightly. Hermione pulled away from him smiling, and chuckled slightly at Ron's confused expression.

"I'm so glad you told me Ron, I was feeling the same way. I wanted to have a romantic relationship with you, but it just wasn't working, was it? There was no feeling in that kiss."

Ron half smiled at her. He was so glad she wasn't mad at him, and even more glad she felt the same way. "If you want, we can always try again, just to make sure there's nothing between us." he suggested.

Hermione studied her tall ginger friend. She wasn't sure if he was joking or not, but after examining his face a bit more, she decided he was serious. She gave a small nod, which elicited a surprised reaction from Ron. He recovered quickly and moved closer to her. He placed his hands on either side of her hips and slowly lowered his face to hers. Hermione wrapped her arms around his neck as Ron's slightly chapped lips met hers. They stayed that way for a few moments before he started to pull away. "Anything?" he asked, his face still only inches from hers.

"Nothing." she breathed, shaking her head.

Ron's shoulders relaxed. "Me neither."

"Still friends?" she asked.

"Always."

The two of them walked back to the Burrow, more comfortable with each other than they had been in what felt like a long time. They entered the kitchen to see Mrs. Weasley shaking Harry awake. She chastised the three of them for staying up most of the night, and made them all a large breakfast before sending them back upstairs for some much needed sleep.


	6. Chapter 6

_A/N: Sorry it's been longer than usual since I've updated. I had a tooth pulled out a few days ago and have been sore and on painkillers ever since. I'm feeling better, still a little sore, and I plan to get back to updating this twice a week or so. Hope everyone enjoys this chapter! Let me know what you think in the reviews :)_

_Also, thanks to everyone who has reviewed/favorited/followed. It's awesome seeing those numbers go up each time I post a new chapter. I love you guys!_

Hermione could feel the warm sun beating down on her. She didn't want to open her eyes just yet, so she snuggled closer to the person that had their arm wrapped around her. She laid her head against his chest and felt his arm tighten around her slightly. She let out a small contented sigh as he started playing with her hair.

They lay like that for a few minutes before she finally opened her eyes, looking into Fred's face. "Have a nice nap Beautiful?" he asked her as their eyes met.

"Mmm, I did. Are we still at the Black Lake?"

"Yeah, we are. I didn't want to move you too far and it was so peaceful here." he said.

"It really is. I feel like I could stay here forever." Hermione said.

"Oh really now?" Fred asked, propping up on one elbow, "I'm glad you're starting to like it here with me. Did you get everything fixed with that kid brother of mine then?"

Hermione punched him gently in the ribs before sitting up. "Yeah, I did. Turns out he was acting weird because he felt the same as me. We have both been through so much together that starting a romantic relationship after all this time just wouldn't work out. We are much better off as friends."

"So does that mean you're available then?" Fred asked suggestively, leaning his face closer to hers.

"Well, yes, I guess that means I am." she replied coyly, leaning towards him as well. Fred felt his pulse start to quicken and his breathing became slightly ragged. When she was just a couple inches from his face, Hermione stopped. "But just because I am available doesn't mean I'm going to go for the first guy I see." and she jumped up and started before he could process what had happened.

Fred caught up to her as she neared the pathway that led back up to the castle. He grabbed her by the waist and the both fell to the ground, Hermione lying on top of Fred. They stared into each others eyes for a long moment before he helped her up and they dusted themselves off. "So," Fred said with a gleam in his eye, "what shall we do today?"

The two spent the next few hours wandering the empty corridors of Hogwarts and simply getting to know each other better. Fred learned that Hermione's favorite color was light blue, and Hermione learned that Fred had originally planned on trying out to be a Chaser on the Quidditch team before George convinced him that they should both be Beaters.

With Fred's extensive knowledge of the school, the pair decided to go visit the other houses common rooms. Since none of the paintings moved in this dream world, gaining access to the common rooms were fairly easy. Naturally, Hermione loved the Ravenclaw common room. It was a large spacious room with bookshelves that lined most of the walls. The view from the tower was perhaps even better than the view from the Gryffindor common room. If it weren't for Ron and Harry and her other Gryffindor friends, Hermione thought she would have been quite happy as a Ravenclaw.

Fred was quite interested in the Hufflepuff common room, however. It was warm and earthy and homey, and slightly reminded him of the Burrow. For the first time since he had arrived here, a small part of him wished he were awake and back home. Then he looked back towards the beautiful, bushy-haired woman who was inspecting a strange looking plant, and he realized there was no where else he wanted to be.

They didn't linger very long in the Slytherin common room, it was cold despite the summer warmth outside, and the whole room had a greenish tinge thanks to the green balls of light that hung around the room. It was a large room with beautiful gothic furniture, but it simply wasn't to Fred and Hermione's taste.

Once they left the dungeons, Fred suggested they go take a look around the Headmaster's office. It was a bit of a trek from the dungeons to the tower, but Hermione agreed. When they were back on the main floor of the castle, Fred took her hand. She was surprised, but she didn't pull away. They walked hand in hand up to the Headmaster's office, and came face to face with the large stone gargoyle. Since it was too large to step around to go the stairs, Fred started naming off different types of candy. At the mention of "canary creams" the gargoyle jumped aside and they began to climb the spiral staircase.

"I must say, I am pretty impressed that the password was one of mine and George's original products." Fred said proudly.

Hermione nodded absently, curious as to what they would find when they reached the office. They were both used to seeing it as Dumbledore had kept it, but Snape had been the headmaster for the past year. Fred gently pushed the door open and they looked around. It looked very similar to what they had been accustomed to seeing, just a bit more empty. There weren't seemingly random knick knacks covering the tables around the room. Each table still had one or two whirring machines, but nothing like there had been. The perch where Fawkes used to sit was still there, but naturally it was empty.

Hermione walked over to the headmaster's desk while Fred examined a rather large globe. The desk was neat and tidy, unlike anything she had seen when Dumbledore was headmaster. She suspected the neatness was Snape's doing. Even though she knew he had been on the Order's side the whole time, Hermione couldn't help feel some resentment towards him. Maybe in time she could put that behind her. She looked up at the wall with all of the former headmasters. Like all of the other portraits in the castle, they didn't move, just like normal, muggle photos.

She looked over all of the pictures before settling her eyes on Dumbledore's. She felt a slight pang remembering that he had died over a year ago. It was still hard to believe at times that he was gone, it was so easy to think he had gone on some important errand and would be back any moment with some important piece of advice hidden inside one of his riddles. She was about to turn away when something in his picture caught her eye. She looked closer at the painting, and Dumbledore winked at her. _He winked. _Her mouth fell open in shock, but before she could call to Fred, the portrait of Dumbledore placed a long, thin finger to his lips.

"Hermione, are you okay?" Fred asked, coming up behind her.

"Yeah, I'm fine, I just thought I saw something. What do you say we get something to eat?" she suggested. He took her hand again and they walked out of the office. Hermione turned her head before they reached the exit and saw Dumbledore looking directly at her and smiling.

They ate in the Great Hall, sitting at their normal spot in the Gryffindor table even though they were the only ones there. They ate sandwiches and soup, and Fred ran down to the kitchens to grab some dessert while Hermione headed back up to their common room. She sat in one of the large comfy chairs near the fireplace, and quickly conjured up a warm fire, even though it wasn't necessary in June.

Soon Fred returned with a plate full of chocolate cake and offered Hermione a slice. They ate while they talked, learning more and more about each other, and sharing their Hogwarts experiences from different points of view. Hermione recalled what it was like when the twins set off all of the fireworks and made their exit from Hogwarts. She told him everything that happened after and how frustrated Umbridge and Filch were at their antics.

Fred told her what things were like after Bill and Fleur's wedding, and what it was like trying to stay hidden and still keep everyone in the loop on what was going on via Potterwatch. Hermione found out how truly worried everyone had been not hearing anything from her, Harry, and Ron. They all understood that they couldn't make contact, but that didn't make the worry any easier.

The sun was starting to set and Hermione could feel herself starting to doze off. She must be starting to wake up in the real world. Fred noticed she was getting tired as well. He took the empty plate from her lap and helped her to her feet.

"I had a really great time today Hermione. I'm really glad it was you that came to visit me. I know one day I will wake up and will have to deal with the real world again, but for now I am glad it's just you and me."

"It's has been really nice just being the two of us. I feel like I know you so much more now, and I really like that." Hermione said, stifling a yawn. She looked up at Fred and say his dark blue eyes staring back at her. She could feel the intensity from his gaze as he placed his hands around her waist. He hugged her closer to him and she inhaled his woodsy scent. She placed her hands around his neck just as he began to lower his mouth to hers. His lips were soft, not rough like Ron's was, and she felt herself kissing him back. She opened her mouth slightly and his tongue darted in. The kiss became more passionate, but all too quickly, he pulled away.

"Now let's get you to bed." Fred said, his voice strained. Hermione's eyes widened before realized he was referring to her sleepiness and not something else. She gave him another quick peck on the lips, and before he could pull her into another intense kiss, she backed up and headed up the stairs to the dormitories, leaving Fred flushed and breathless.


	7. Chapter 7

_A/N: thanks again for all of the reviews and follows! My missing tooth has completely healed and feels much better._

The next couple of weeks passed by in a blur. Every day, reporters would hound them for interviews. Harry's face was plastered on the front of the Daily Prophet almost every day, frequently accompanied by Ron, Hermione, and other members of the Order of the Phoenix. Harry was offered Ministry jobs left and right, even once he was asked to be the new Minister of Magic. He politely declined and Kingsley Shacklebolt was instated the very next day.

Five days after the battle, Mrs. Weasley finally convinced George to go home, eat, sleep, and take a shower. He did as he was told, but was back by Fred's side in a matter of hours. After that, he agreed to watch over Fred in shifts, and began making preparations to open up the shop again. He never went more than a few hours without checking in on his twin though.

Almost three weeks after the final Battle of Hogwarts, George and Hermione found themselves alone in Fred's room. Hermione was growing quite attached to the comatose brother, having spent every sleeping moment with him since the battle. Just last night, he had taken her deep into the Forbidden Forest, they walked until they came upon a large area clear of trees. They both had laid down in the grass and looked up at the stars and held each other close.

"Hermione?" George said quietly. They had been silent for over an hour, so the sudden noise made her jump a little.

"Yes?" she asked.

"Remember the first day Fred was brought here?" she nodded, acknowledging that day. "Well one of the things that the healers said was that he has to want to wake up. It's been almost a month, why doesn't he want to wake up?" he looked at her almost accusingly, as if it were her fault his twin was still in a coma. _And in a way, _Hermione thought, _maybe it is partially my fault._

"I just don't know George." she sighed. "I've brought it up to him a few times but he just kinda brushes me off. Every now and then he will start talking about you, or the Burrow, or the shop, and he gets kind of a wistful look in his eyes. He does miss you, he does George, I don't know what's holding him back, but I am trying."

George smiled. "I know you're trying 'Mione, and I really do appreciate it, it's just hard seeing him like this, and you being able to talk to him all the time and I can't. Me and him have always been a team, you know? And now that it's just me for who knows how long, I just don't know what to do with myself. Every single day I'm at the store, I will turn around to tell Fred something, only to remember that he isn't there with me. It's hard, it's like half of me is missing and I don't know how to get it back." he buried his head in his hands and started taking a few deep breaths. Hermione could only imagine what he must be going through, and it made her hurt just seeing George looking so lost and broken without Fred around.

Hermione reached over the bed and gently placed her hand on George's arm. He jerked his head up at her touch. His eyes were rimmed with tears, causing her to get up, walk around the bed, and give him a big hug. He was so similar to Fred in many ways, it calmed her just being able to hold him, and she could tell she was having a similar effect on him.

After just a minute or two, they broke apart and stared at each other. His eyes were half a shade lighter than Fred's, she noticed. George broke into a wide grin and said, "Well, I guess now I understand what's keeping him there. You are truly wonderful Hermione, and if it were me trapped in a dream world with only you, I might not want to leave either." Hermione blushed, causing him to laugh. "I really can see what he sees in you, even if I'm not attracted to you in the same way. No offense though." he tacked on at the end.

"I will try to wake him up George, I promise." she whispered.

"I know you will."

Hermione arrived at the Ministry of Magic shortly after noon. Harry and Ron weren't at the Burrow when she returned from St. Mungo's, so she reasonably guessed they would be here, doing another interview where they would say the same things over and over. She was astounded they still had questions to ask and things to report on.

Hermione's assumption turned out to be correct, she had barely entered the grand foyer when she spotted Harry, surrounded by reporters and journalists and looking positively overwhelmed. As she came closer his green eyes locked on hers and she practically heard him silently scream for help.

She walked quickly over to the group and grabbed his arm. "I am terribly sorry ladies and gentlemen," she announced to the crowd, "but Harry is late for an appointment." she paused as everyone started asking questions all at once, mostly about what kind of appointment. "As I'm sure you can all imagine, Harry has suffered greatly at the hands of Lord Voldemort." the crowd gasped, still not comfortable with using that name. Hermione put her hand up to silence them before continuing, "Harry has lost almost all of his family and quite a few friends as well. Because of such, Minister Shacklebolt has recommended that he have weekly therapy sessions to cope with all of his losses. His appointment was five minutes ago, so if you don't mind, we must be leaving now." and she drug Harry away by the arm before they could ask anymore questions.

"Where's Ron?" she asked when they were out of earshot.

"In the cafeteria I think. Hermione, are we really going to see a shrink?"

"No, I needed to talk to you and Ron, although now that I've brought it up, I really do think it might be good for you Harry. I know it seems like the brave thing to do dealing with it all yourself, but sometimes it's even braver to admit you could use some help." she smiled at him as they entered the cafeteria. Per the usual, Ron was at a table eating as much as he could. How he managed to say so lean, Hermione would never know.

"Didja finally escape?" He asked when Harry and Hermione sat down on either side of him.

"It was all thanks to Hermione really. She told them tha-" he stopped when he felt something tugging at his robes. He looked down to see a little girl that couldn't have been more than five or six, standing there with her arm outstretched.

"Thank you Mr. Harry Potter for saving us."she said quietly and handed three sickles to him. He took the money and gave her a huge smile, causing her to smile in return before running back to her parents. He pocketed the coins before returning to his friends.

"Blimey Harry, that's the third time today someone has given you money, will it ever stop?" Ron joked. They had all had moments over the past few weeks where perfect strangers would come up to them trying to give them money for all of their hard work. Most of the time they wouldn't take no for an answer, so they had learned to just take the money with a smile. It was still Harry that had o deal with this eighty percent of the time though. Ginny had brilliantly suggested that they use that money to set up some sort of fund or charity for those who had lost loved ones due to Lord Voldemort and the Death Eaters. They were still figuring out all of the details, but so far they were happy with where it was going.

"So Hermione, Harry says you have to tell us something. What's up?" Ron asked, having finally finished his enormous plate. Instead of replying, she got up and motioned for them to follow. She wandered around the corridors until she found an abandoned office.

She seated herself on top of the desk and looked at her two best friends. She knew Harry would be understanding, but she wasn't sure how Ron would react. She took a deep breath, "I need to tell you something about Fred. No, no, no, nothing bad has happened!" she added quickly, seeing Ron's panicked expression. "It's just, ever since he fell into a coma, every time I go to sleep I see him. Not just a dream him, but the real Fred. He has told me things that I would have never known about him, and George has confirmed that they are true. And I know it sounds completely crazy, but whenever we are together in that dream world, we just kind of click. I am really starting to have feelings for him, and it seems he has always had some sort of feelings for me too. I really like him guys, and I don't know if his feelings will transfer over when he wakes up, but I can certainly tell that mine do. I don't know when he will wake up, but just know that I am trying. I have never felt this way about anyone before, and to be honest, it's really scary for me, especially since this isn't your normal way of falling in love."

_Love? Did I just say I was falling in love with him? _Hermione wondered suddenly. She had never said those words to anyone before, at least not in the romantic meaning. She had completely shocked herself she didn't even notice Ron standing up until he was almost at the door. She looked up at him, his face angrier than she had ever seen before. Hermione found herself scared for a whole new reason.

"It's your fault my brother won't wake up." he spat out before slamming the door shut.


	8. Chapter 8

"It's your fault my brother won't wake up."

Hermione stared open mouthed at the door long after Ron had left. Out of the corner of her eye, she could see Harry repeatedly look from the door to her, as if he was unsure who to talk to. When he saw a tear fall down her face, he made up his mind and put his arm around her. She sank into his embrace and let the tears fall more freely.

"I...wasn't sure...what to expect telling you guys. But it...definitely wasn't that." She sniffed, suddenly aware that she was getting his robe wet and snotty. She straightened herself up and wiped her nose on her own sleeve. She looked at Harry, she couldn't tell what he was thinking, but she assumed he was probably still confused on some things that she had told them.

"Look Hermione." he said quietly, "I won't pretend to understand everything that you just said, but if everything you said is true, then I'm happy for you. The whole situation is weird, but I have noticed you have been smiling a lot more lately. You seem to have adjusted better to life after Voldemort than most of us have. I can only guess that is partly because of Fred. And also because you are so much more levelheaded than the rest of us." He added, earning a small laugh from Hermione. "I'll see if I can talk some sense into Ron, you know he doesn't always handle news well. I agree that he acted way out of line, but that was a pretty big shock for him. You and he didn't work out and now all of a sudden you tell him you're in a relationship with his comatose brother? That mixed with his hot headed personality is a recipe for disaster. I'll calm him down, then maybe we can talk about this all like we are mature adults, even if we aren't most of the time. So are you going to be okay?" Hermione nodded, and Harry patted her knee before walking out of the office to try and find Ron.

Hermione stayed in the room for a few more moments, before getting up and leaving herself. She flooed back to the Burrow, which, much to her relief, was completely empty. She ran up the stairs and into the bedroom she shared with Ginny. She threw herself down on the cot and started to cry again. _Why is he always so stupid? _She thought _Whenever I'm happy with someone else, he always finds a way to ruin it. _She cried into her pillow until she had exhausted herself, desperately hoping she would fall asleep so she could see the one person who could make her feel better.

She tossed and turned for an hour, but could not fall asleep. Extremely frustrated, she gave up and decided to go visit Fred at St Mungo's before the rest of the Weasleys returned home. She wasn't sure she wanted to deal with them yet, especially if Ron told them all about her strange relationship with Fred. She got up and walked to the bathroom. She attempted to comb through her massive curls to no avail. She pulled her hair back in a bushy ponytail before looking in the mirror. She looked positively distraught. Her eyes were swollen and red, tear marks covered her face and stained the collar of her robe.

She washed her face, and changed into some clean, muggle clothing. There wasn't much she could do about her eyes, Ginny was much more proficient with beauty spells than she was. She hoped the swelling and redness would go down before she bumped into any of the other Weasleys, or Harry for that matter. She didn't want them to know how much Ron had gotten to her.

She wasn't as uncomfortable with George seeing her like this. More than once when she had come to visit Fred, he was in a similar state. The two connected on a different level now, not in a romantic way, but they understood each other better than before, and although they weren't comfortable with everything yet, they both had let their vulnerability peek through from time to time.

Hermione took a deep breath and Apparated into the lobby of St. Mungo's. She began walking up the stairs to Fred's room, and as soon as she reached the landing, she knew something was wrong. She could hear shouts coming from none other than Fred's room. Although she couldn't make out what was being said, but the loudest voice she already knew belonged to Ron. She heard another voice, one that she couldn't place immediately, but she could tell whoever was behind it that they were very angry at Ron.

She had her hand on the doorknob, suddenly very nervous, bu before she could turn and leave, the door flew open and she was face to face with Ron. He looked just as angry as before, perhaps even more so, and he shoved past her as if he couldn't see her. Harry quickly followed after him after giving a sympathetic look at Hermione. She watched them go down the hallway, Ron still quaking with anger. She turned her attention back to the open door and was suddenly aware that four pairs of Weasley eyes were now staring at her.

Never had she wished so badly that she had an invisibility cloak. Three of the Weasleys look at her with shock, most likely still bewildered at Ron's behavior. The fourth had his jaw set tight, and still looked very angry. She now knew that the other voice she had heard coming from the room belonged to George. She had a very good feeling she knew why Ron had come here, and what he had said to his siblings and mother.

She sat wearily next to Ginny, who put a loving arm around her. She looked up to see Molly, George, and Percy still looking at her, they seemed to be at as much of a loss of words as she was. After what felt like an eternity, Percy spoke. "I don't suppose you caught any of that, did you Hermione?"

"I'm afraid I didn't," she sighed, "but I'm sure I can guess what it's about."

"So it's true then?" Ginny inquired. "Do you really talk to him when you're asleep? And in this dream state, you guys are...dating?"

"You know that wasn't the word he used Ginny." George growled. He took a breath before turning to Hermione, and much more calmly, said, "Ron came in here ranting and raving about you shagging Fred in your sleep."

Hermione's mouth dropped open in both shock and embarrassment. She could feel her face turning a bright red. She stood and held up her hands and began waving them back and forth. "No no no, it's nothing like that! I mean, I do see Fred, and I know it's really him, he's told me things I never would have known. I don't know how this magic works, it just does. Fred and I have never done, um, _that_, and no, we aren't dating either. I mean, when he wakes up it might be a possibility, but not while he is still like this." She gestured to the sleeping twin in between them. "I know how crazy this all sounds, and I never thought Ron would have reacted this badly, and I'm really sorry about that. I want him to wake up as much as you all do, and I don't know why it hasn't happened yet, but I am trying."

She looked down at Fred again, and tried to fight off the tears that were trying to fall. She reached her hand out and lightly stroked the back of his hand. _Why won't you just wake up? We all need you here Fred. Your mom and dad, sister and brothers, your twin. I need you here. _A lone tear fell from her eye, and she felt a warm arm wrap around her shoulders.

"I'm sorry about my son." Mrs. Weasley said in her ear. "This is hard for all of us, and Ron has always taken things a bit, harder than the rest of us. He tends to speak before he thinks, and that gets him into a lot of trouble. Harry will calm him down, and in a few days, I'm sure he will apologize. I love you like you were my own daughter Hermione, don't you ever forget that. This is still a big surprise to all of us, so forgive us if it takes some time to process this information. This is a very unique situation, but I believe it will all work out in the end, for all of us."

More tears had fallen from Hermione's eyes. Mrs. Weasley had always been understanding, she wasn't sure what she had been so afraid of. Hermione turned towards her and the half hug quickly became a full, spine popping, embrace.

"Thank you Mrs. Weasley."


End file.
